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Legislative Update from Senator Mike Gabbard
COMMITTEE CHAIR
* Energy and Environment
MEMBER
* Judiciary and Labor
MEMBER
* Transportation and International Affairs
District 19
Waikele, Royal Ku‐nia, Village Park, Makakilo, Kapolei, Kalaeloa, Honokai
Hale, and portions of Waipahu and
Ko‘Olina
Aloha Friends,
Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers of District 19 who have made so many sacrifices for their families. Let's hope your husbands and children take you out for a nice brunch or a day at the beach on May 13th. Here are a few things I'd like to share with you.
Call me at 586‐6830 or email me at [email protected] if I can help you in any way.
The Mural at Pu‘u o Kapolei: A Work of "Aloha"
It was a moving experience to attend the dedication of the Mural at Pu‘u o Kapolei at the Kapo‐lei Regional Park on April 28th. I had the opportunity to present an honorary certificate from the State Senate to Kapolei High School Principal, Elden Esmeralda, and his team for making this project happen. The Mural is part of the Malama Kapolei Project, a partnership between the ‘Ahahui Siwila Hawai‘i O Kapolei (Hawai‘i Civic Club of Kapolei) and the Honolulu Police Depart‐ment District 8 Community Policing Team. In 2010, the Civic Club took responsibility to care for the land in Kapolei Regional Park near the archery range where World War II military bunkers are located. Despite efforts by the Club to keep the area clean, the bunkers were a continual target for graffiti. Their solution was to enlist Kapolei High to create a community mural on the bunker walls that reflects the history of Kapolei. The mural represents images showing the cultural heritage of the indigenous people of Hawai‘i and Pu‘u o Kapolei, which was an im‐portant region during ancient times because it was a natural crossing path for travelers. Some of the themes in the mural are daily life of the Hawaiian, Kamapua‘a’s grandmother and her home, the kalo korm, the sun, the moon phases, the Ewa plantation era, and the military. The mural was painted by Kapolei High School students and art teachers Haley Kailiehu and Martha Richards, assisted by residents and artists of West Oahu as well as graduate students and staff from the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa College of Education. Inspiration for the mural came from long‐time Makakilo resident and Hawaiian cultural expert, Uncle Shad Kane. Uncle Shad along with Officers Debbie Pohina‐Maioho and Jodi Taitaiau gave lectures about the history of Kapolei. It is truly a work of "aloha" that will be appreciated by Kapolei residents for many years to come.
District 19 Residents Offer to Serve
Congratulations to the following District 19 residents who were nominated by the Governor and confirmed by the State Senate to serve on state Boards and Commissions. All of them deserve praise for lending their talents to make Hawai‘i an even better place to live.
Shirley Swinney (Kapolei) ‐ Hawai‘i Community Development Authority Rey Graulty (Makakilo) ‐ Hawai‘i Health Authority Beverly Lee (Village Park) ‐ King Kamehameha Celebration Commission Loraine Fleming (Makakilo) – State Board of Nursing Dave Rae (Makakilo) ‐ Hawai‘i Tourism Authority Board of Directors Robert Martin (Waikele) ‐ Hawai‘i Workforce Development Council
"Listen Story" Meeting
My next two “Listen Story” meetings will be held at the Kunia Starbucks (Kunia Shopping Center) on Saturday, May 5th and at the Kapolei Starbucks (next to the Chevron Station) on Saturday, June 16th. Both meetings are from 9:00am to 10:00am.
2012
Construction Funding for Our Communities
Senate District 19 was awarded $59,979,000 in construction funding in the Fiscal Year 2013 supplemental budget. Mahalo to Ways and Means Committee Chair David Ige and Vice Chair Michelle Kidani in the Senate and Finance Committee Chair Marcus Oshiro and Vice Chair Marilyn Lee in the House for all their hard work in making this happen. Here are the specific projects:
Kalaeloa East Energy Corridor ‐ $3.5 million Kalaeloa Airport Utility Corridor ‐ $500,000 Kalaeloa Fuel Pier Facility Improvements ‐ $2 million Kalaeloa Harbor Improvements ‐ $25,150,000 Kalei‘opu‘u Elementary (secondary ramp for campus evacuation) ‐ $625,000 Kapolei High (new locker room and showers) ‐ $4,665,000 Kualaka‘i Parkway (Kapolei Parkway to Roosevelt) ‐ $15 million Kunia Agricultural Park Improvements ‐ $1 million Makakilo Elementary (special education portable building) ‐ $375,000 Malama Learning Center ‐ $400,000 Royal Kunia Elementary School (plans for a new elementary school) ‐ $150,000 UH West Oahu (campus‐wide sitework and improvements) ‐ $2.5 million UH West Oahu (planning and design for Allied Health building) ‐ $995,000 UH West Oahu (planning and design for creative media facility) ‐ $900,000 UH West Oahu (road to connect campus to Farrington Highway) ‐ $1,250,000 Waikele Elementary (expansion of cafeteria to include a performing arts stage) ‐ $794,000 Waikele Elementary (resurfacing basketball court and creation of playground concrete surface )‐ $175,000
East Kalaeloa Energy Corridor
One of my top priorities this session was to get the East Kalaeloa Energy Corridor funded. This $3.5 mil‐lion project will run a 46 kV line through Kalaeloa for four 5 MW photovoltaic (PV) solar parks and eventually also be a hook‐up for the U.S. Coast Guard to improve their facilities. This will also give a big boost to our economy.
For the $3.5 million of state investment, it is projected that each private PV developer will spend approxi‐mately $20 million to construct 4 potential sites,. This will result in at least $80 million in private investments and will create approximately 120 construction jobs/20 long‐term jobs.
For the same $3.5 million of state investment, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) will secure approximately $10 mil‐lion to upgrade their electrical infrastructure and secure an additional estimated $20 million to build a new hangar that will prevent future erosion issues the USCG faces currently. It's projected to create 85 construc‐tion jobs.
In addition each PV project will be paying for a 20 year lease of which those funds will remain in the district to help develop the Kalaeloa Heritage Park and other badly needed infrastructure projects.
Kristie Kodama: Boys & Girls Clubs Youth of the Year Honoree
I honored Kristie Kodama of Kapolei in the State Senate chambers on April 5th for her being named a 2012 State of Hawai‘i Boys & Girls Clubs Youth of the Year honoree. Youth of the Year is the Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s premier recog‐nition program for Club members, who promote service to the Club, community and family, who exemplify academic success, strong moral character, and life goals, and who possess strong poise and public speaking abil‐ity. Participants develop and practice leadership skills in varied roles and are empowered to take control of their futures. As a member, Kristie volunteered in various areas of the Hawai‘i Hale Pono Clubhouse, implementing activities and involving herself in a wide range of community service pro‐jects. Some of these projects included monthly Citizen Patrol Walks, beach and community clean‐ups, and assist‐ing with Ohana Food Distributions. Although she didn’t have to, Kristie would sacrifice her Saturdays and some‐times even a Sunday, just to be of service to others. Kristie, now a senior at Kapolei High School, has respectful and close relationships with the Club staff and her peers. She is recognized as a wonderful role model to other clubhouse members. Kristie is surely a young woman who will accomplish great things as she continues on her chosen path in life and as a leader inspiring others. We wish her all success.
Senator Gabbard stands in front of his office at the State Capitol, where he displays a bumper sticker announcing the August 20th opening date for UH West Oahu. After 46 years in the planning, UHWO will open its doors to a very patient, and ap‐preciative West Oahu commu‐nity.
Key Energy and Environment Bills Pass the Legislature
This was my 4th session as the Chair of the Senate's Energy and Environment Committee. This is a quick run‐down of some of the key bills we passed this session.
SB 2785 – sets up a regulatory framework for an interisland undersea cable to be constructed in order to allow electricity to be sent from one island to another. This would ensure that, if a cable is built, it would be treated as a cable utility regulated by the Public Utilities Commission.
SB 2746 – modifies existing state benefits for electric vehicle owners by making it so they have free me‐tered parking for up to 2.5 hours and can use the HOV lanes regardless of the number of passengers through 2020.
SB 2281 ‐ allows applicants or agencies to bypass an environmental assessment (EA) and proceed di‐rectly to an environmental impact assessment (EIS) if the proposed project is likely to require an EIS anyway. This will save developers time and money without compromising environmental protections.
SB 2001 ‐ amends the state Planning Act to promote the development of indigenous renewable energy resources, such as geothermal, which is located on public trust land as an affordable and reliable source of firm power for Hawai‘i.
Senate Honors 2011 Mrs. Hawai‘i U.S. Christie Oclaray
Senator Michelle Kidani and I honored Christie Oclaray of Makakilo in the Senate Chambers on April 2nd. Mrs. Oclaray won the Mrs. Hawaii U.S. title in May 2011. Christie is currently a human re‐sources manager with MARISco, Limited and teaches professional development courses at Leeward Community College. She is also a Board member of the Hawai‘i Public Charter Schools and Kaho‘omiki – the Hawai‘i Council on Physical Activity and Sports. Christie was recently diagnosed with Hashimoto's and Graves Dis‐ease, which are auto‐immune conditions which attack the thyroid. She now lives and promotes a gluten‐free lifestyle.
PM Contraflow Zipper Lane
I was happy to get an update from the state Department of Transpor‐tation recently on the status of the PM Contraflow Zipper Lane pro‐ject. It has been delayed for a while because of a bid protest is‐sue that needed to be re‐solved. The total cost of this pro‐ject is approximately $82.1 million and is expected to start in May 2012. Phase I will involve the deck repairs of the Pearl City and Wai‐malu Viaducts. Phase II will be the PM Zipper Lane construction (from Radford Drive to H1/H2 split). The total project will take roughly 20 months to complete.
The Sierra Club and the Office of Sena‐tor Gabbard held a community show‐ing of “Revenge of the Electric Car” on April 17, 2012 at Kapolei High School. The film chronicles the resurgence of electric cars and the race of carmakers to make the best one. Members of the audience asked Senator Gabbard about his experience with his all‐electric Nissan LEAF.
Capitol Idol 2012: A Smashing Success
My office organized the Capitol Idol 2012 talent show at the Capitol on April 16th, where we raised $1391 for the Hawai‘i Foodbank. Members of the State Senate and House squared off in the hopes of winning the perpetual individual and team tro‐phies, with local comedian Augie T volunteering as emcee. The House of Represen‐tatives came away with the team trophy, and Representative Marcus Oshiro performed a number in drag to the tune "I Will Survive" to win the individual prize. We got our okoles kicked by the House, but we’ll be back next
year. I mean how can you compete with a House Finance Chair who slinks, bumps and grinds around the stage belting out “I Will Survive”? Seriously, this was a great way to let off a little steam during the busiest part of the session and raise money for a very worthy cause. We hope to make this an annual event to show‐case legislators' hidden talents. The five Senate acts included me singing/playing guitar and harmonica, Brickwood Galuteria, Josh Green, Pohai Ryan and Malama Solomon. House contenders were Representatives Tom Brower, Cindy Evans, Ken Ito, John Mizuno and Marcus Oshiro.
On April 4, 2012, the Hawai`i State Senate honored the heads of each county Invasive Species Committee and Dr. Moshen Rama‐dan, a field biologist in the Department of Agriculture’s biological control program, for their work to keep invasive species under control. Pictured on the Senate floor from left are: Rachel Neville of the Oahu Invasive Species Committee, Teya Penniman of the Maui Invasive Species Committee, Lori Bu‐chanan of the Moloka`i Invasive Species Committee, Senator Gabbard, Keren Gun‐dersen of the Kaua`i Invasive Species Com‐mittee, Jan Schipper of the Big Island Inva‐sive Species Committee and Dr. Ramadan.
The Hawai`i State Legislature honored U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka for receiving the Harry S. Truman Award for his years of service to the people of Ha‐wai`i, on April 3, 2012. State Senator Gabbard shared a mo‐ment in the Senate chambers with Senator Akaka and his wife Millie.
Senator Gabbard performed a rendi‐tion of Bob Dylan’s Times, they are a Changin.
Senator Gabbard presents Represen‐tative Oshiro with the winner’s per‐petual trophy, an engraved mahogany bowl.
Dave Rolf of the Hawai`i Automobile Dealers Association successfully hit the target to dump Senator Gabbard into the water as part of a Hawai`i Food‐bank fundraiser on April 19, 2012. The event was held on the lawn of the Capitol and organized by Senator Clayton Hee.